HOW TO STAY ON GOAL WITH YOUR READING

It is officially 2018 and we have made our goals and resolutions for the year which naturally includes reading! I know, I know, it is a goal we set every year but this year will be different and we will stay on track!   From a previous post we know practical ways to find time to read and we plan on implementing those this year. However there are ways for each of you to stay on track to ensure you successfully reach your reading goal for 2018!

FIND BOOKS THAT INTEREST AND CONNECT WITH YOU

It is so easy to have a goal to read deep, philosophical books but if they are boring, lets be honest, they will end up being decorative books on your coffee table with a quickness! No matter how hard you try, you will find yourself falling asleep within 10 minutes of reading the book and then 5 years later you will place that exact book back on your New Years resolution list. Lets avoid that! It may take some time, but find a book that interest you. A book that will make you excited to read!

Not all books have to be super philosophical to educate and inspire you to do better. There are books out there that are simple and to the point that will have such an impact on your life. At the end of 2017 I had a month of required down time. During this period I took my time and carefully picked books that would interest me and keep me motivated. I would spend quite a bit of time browsing the library, reading reviews, and gauging my emotions. All those things impacted what book I would read. I would even keep my eyes out for books in movies. I ending up read Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger from watching a Netflix movie one night!

FIND A READING BUDDY

A reading buddy aka an accountability partner is always fun! Not only does it push you to finish a book but it is ohh so exciting to discuss the book with someone while reading. Naturally joining a book club is ideal but you may not have a goal of reading 12 books in a year like most book clubs require.   With a reading buddy, you guys set the stage and you determine how fast or slow you want to read. Also a reading buddy is perfect for doing book swaps and providing book suggestions.

REVIEW FORUMS

Review forums are great. They help you avoid books you regret wasting your money on and also help with determining what books are super popular.  My rule of thumb is, if the book has at least 3 1/2 stars I will at least review what the book is about. I must admit, I am a sucker for popular opinion and I will let forum reviews sway me on books. Some of the forums that I heavily rely on are Amazon, Goodreads, and IBooks reviews. Trust me when I say people are HARSH (hahaha). Those forums will help you save your money and will in fact steer you to a good book. I remember one review literally bashed the book they were reviewing and encouraged the person reading the review to read a different book all together, provided a link and everything!

 

SET REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS

This is a big one guys, it is important not to get burnt out on reading. It is meant to empower and educate you and I don’t want anyone hating it. I find myself pushing it at times and even as a book blogger I am quick to take a break from reading and do other things! That is okay! The book isn’t going to keep you warm at night or talk to you when you are having a bad day, so I encourage you to interact with people as well 🙂 hahahaa.

If you are not much of a reader start with a realistic goal of reading a book a quarter, or even just finding an interesting book all together. Finding a book you are interested in is an accomplishment all within itself. If you are going to invest your time into something, it sure better be worth it! If you are a reader, set a goal of rereading classics or even finding books that have movies attached to them (that is a fun goal)!   Pushing yourself is great and I always encourage that, but sometimes overdoing it is damaging.  No one wants to get to the point to where they don’t read for like a year.

What are ways you guys stay on goal with reading? Until next time, happy reading!